Visioning an Effective Health Encounter: Indigenous Healthcare Experiences and Recommendations for Health Professionals

Melissa E. Lewis (), Sky Wildcat and Amber Anderson
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Melissa E. Lewis: Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Missouri School of Medicine, Columbia, MO 65201, USA
Sky Wildcat: Department of Higher Education, College of Education and Health Professions, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Amber Anderson: Department of Health Promotion Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 20, 1-18

Abstract: Purpose: Indigenous patients experience challenges while accessing and utilizing healthcare services that relate to worsened health experiences. Bias towards Indigenous patients is prevalent in healthcare settings and leads to poor health outcomes. The purpose of this study was to learn about the healthcare experiences, both positive and negative, of Indigenous patients and solicit subsequent recommendations to improve care delivered to this population. Methods: This study sampled Indigenous patients ( n = 20) from an Indigenous-serving health clinic to discuss participants’ health experiences and elicit recommendations for improved care. Four focus groups were conducted, and template analysis was employed to analyze the data. Results: A total of 15 themes were developed under the category of an effective health encounter. Highlighted themes include healthcare that is free of stigma, quality care, respecting trauma experiences, expanded integrated care and the patient–provider relationship. Based on participant recommendations, a checklist was created for healthcare professionals to improve care delivery to Indigenous patients. Results indicated that bias in healthcare settings may masquerade as poor clinical care but is really founded in biased beliefs and healthcare delivery. Alternatively, when patients received good quality care, their healthcare outcomes improved. Further, effective healthcare incorporates culture, family, tribe, and community and addresses these aspects of health in both clinical and systemic settings. Conclusions: With some of the largest proportions of health disparities and bias experiences in the US, it is critical that healthcare delivered to Indigenous patients incorporate culturally safe care to regain dignity and improve health outcomes for this population.

Keywords: Indigenous health; healthcare delivery; provider bias (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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